The pot of gold at the end of their rainbow included a short, balding gentleman with a gourd-shaped nose and two geezers in black suits — one shuffling around in untied orthopedic shoes.

It was only 9 p.m., and a masquerade ball to unite sugar daddies and their sugar babies was just getting started.

“I have a fancier lifestyle,” said an NYU student named Samantha as she hooked arms with a graying widower from Chicago. “I’m not going to downgrade to some NYU boy who buys dollar beers.

“Why drive a Mitsubishi when you can drive a Porsche?”

The 21-year-old junior, in a red dress and platinum heels, was one of nearly 150 women at the mixer hosted by Seeking Arrangement, a 2.7 million-member dating Web site that pairs cash-hungry co-eds with older, wealthier men for “mutually beneficial relationships.”

It was supposed to be a formal affair, but not all dressed the part.

Two slick-haired guidos didn’t bother with masks or suits, opting for jeans and button-down shirts.

One white-haired man flitted about the room like Zorro with a mask made from pantyhose.

I’m not going to downgrade to some NYU boy who buys dollar beers. Why drive a Mitsubishi when you can drive a Porsche?

- Samantha, an NYU student

As the night wore on, the sugar daddies began groping women in plain view. A 50-something man in a gray blazer felt up a girl’s neck before grabbing her behind.

When one Bronx gal broke the ice with another silver fox, he sniffed, “Oh, no, I want a girl from Manhattan,” and turned away.

A brunette danced with the elderly man with orthopedic shoes, but when he leaned in for a smooch, she turned her cheek.

Still, many seasoned sugar babies told The Post that a lack of physical attraction is no problem.

“I haven’t found one that’s attractive to me, and my standards aren’t that high,” said a 25-year-old co-ed who traveled from Nashville with her longtime sugar daddy.

The blond Army soldier said her 59-year-old benefactor — who was diagnosed with terminal cancer — pays $4,000 a month for both her and her sister’s living expenses.

“He tries so hard to make me happy,” she said. “He’s going to be my No. 1 sugar daddy until he goes.”

One Pace University student, 22, said she dates sugar daddies instead of working a part-time job.

“I grew up with money. I’m not a poor person,” the woman sniffed. “My parents still give me money, but only a certain allowance.”

She said a businessman from Dubai gave her $1,000 to have coffee with him at a Times Square Starbucks. She sees a 40-something man who gives her $400 to $800 every time they hang out. It never goes beyond kissing, she said.

An attendee at the mixer from Nashville awaits a suitor.Photo: Angel Chevrestt

“You’re attracted to what they offer you,” she said, holding up a Louis Vuitton bag. “I like luxury. It doesn’t matter what age they are.”

Seeking Arrangement founder and CEO Brandon Wade said the bash at Yotel was timed for diploma season, as many of the site’s female members are preparing to graduate with college debt.

“This is almost like a job fair, because a sugar daddy is a mentor, provider and gentleman,” Wade said, adding the average sugar baby gets $3,000 a month in money and gifts. “Why not date someone who can help you?”

When the site launched in 2006, one in four female members were college students. Now nearly one in two are, he said.

“As for the sugar babies, we want them to be sexy in a classy way,” he said.